1. Field
The present disclosure relates to the use of a barrier with a zipper assembly. In some aspects, a barrier may be used with a zipper assembly to prevent the infiltration of small particles and/or organisms from one side of a barrier to an opposite side of the barrier.
2. Discussion of Related Art
Bed bugs are a type of small parasitic insect that prefers to feed on human blood and that can dwell within bed mattresses. To prevent bed bugs from reaching a person sleeping on a mattress, a fabric cover or encasement may be provided to surround the mattress so as to prevent the bugs from escaping. The encasement is typically placed around the mattress and closed by a zipper so that the bed bugs encounter the barrier of the fabric cover and are unable to exit.
Zippers are commonly used for temporarily joining two edges of material, typically fabric, for a wide range of daily applications, such as in the usage of clothing, luggage/bags, furniture and bedding materials. FIG. 1A depicts a conventional zipper assembly 10 having two strips of fabric tape 40 each affixed to corresponding zipper tracks 32, 34. The zipper tracks each have a number of teeth 36 that can be enmeshed together to form a set of linked zipper tracks 30. A zipper slider 20, having a Y-shaped channel, is manipulated by a user pulling a tab 22 to move the zipper slider along the rows of teeth so as to bring opposing rows of teeth together into a mesh, or to separate previously enmeshed teeth. Depending on the direction in which the slider is manipulated, the zipper can be opened or closed.
The zipper may be pulled in a direction (e.g., upward) so as to reach a closed position and such that the linked zipper tracks 30 may largely restrict the passage of small particles or organisms from one side of the zipper to the other. However, for standard zipper assemblies, even when closed, a small space (e.g., about 5 mm2 in area) through which small particles or organisms might move will almost inevitably exist at the top of the zipper.